alition
is usually elected prime minister by Parliament; deputy prime
minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the
prime minister from among the members of Parliament

Legislative branch:

unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from
single-member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year
terms)
elections: last held on 5 April 2006 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - National Party 6.9%,
PAP 6.3%, SIPRA 6.3%, Liberal 5%, Democratic 4.9%, SOCRED 4.3%,
LAFARI 2.8%, independents 60.3%; seats by party - National Party 4,
SIPRA 4, Democratic 3, PAP 3, LAFARI 2, Liberal 2, SOCRED 2,
independents 30

Judicial branch:

Court of Appeal

Political parties and leaders:

Association of Independent Members or AIM [Thomas CHAN]; Christian
Alliance Solomon Islands or CASI [Edward RONIA]; LAFARI Party [John
GARO]; National Party [Francis HILLY]; People's Alliance Party or
PAP [Sir Allan KEMAKEZA]; Social Credit Party or SOCRED [Manasseh
Damukana SOGAVARE]; Solomon First Party [David QUAN]; Solomon
Islands Democratic Party [Gabriel SURI]; Solomon Islands Labor Party
or SILP [Joses TUHANUKU]; Solomon Islands Liberal Party [Bartholomew
ULUFA'ALU]; Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement or SIPRA
[Job D. TAUSINGA]; United Party [Sir Peter KENILOREA]
note: in general, Solomon Islands politics is characterized by fluid
coalitions

Political pressure groups and leaders:

Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM); Malaita Eagle Force (MEF); note -
these rival armed ethnic factions crippled the Solomon Islands in a
wave of violence from 1999 to 2003

International organization participation:

ACP, ADB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IOC, ITU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF,
Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Collin David BECK
chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400L, New York, NY 10017
telephone: [1] (212) 599-6192, 6193
FAX: [1] (212) 661-8925

Diplomatic representation from the US:

the US does not have an embassy in Solomon Islands (embassy closed
July 1993); the ambassador to Papua New Guinea is accredited to the
Solomon Islands

Flag description:

divided diagonally by a thin yellow stripe from the lower hoist-side
corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is blue with five white
five-pointed st